Vehicles stuck in a traffic jam near Kyiv’s Southern Bridge after overnight jet drone strikes, October 2, 2026 (Valentyn Ogirenko/ Reuters)

EA-Ukraine VideoCast: The Kremlin Won’t Talk — So Russia Must Be Isolated

Friday’s Coverage: Zelensky — Our Ballistic Missile Used for 1st Time v. Russia

UPDATE 0652 GMT:

Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal has informed European partners of Russia’s plan to collapse Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

In Paris two weeks ago, Shmyhal shared a document describing a campaign using up to 1,000 missiles, drones and bombs. The assuaults will target facilities including electrical substations, hydroelectric and thermal power plants, and boiler houses.

Moscow intends to force the shutdown of Ukraine’s three operating nuclear plants by firing missiles at the electrical switchyards that connect them to the grid.

The document also describes Russian targeting Ukraine’s water system, including pumping stations and wastewater treatment facilities, with dozens of ballistic missiles and glide bombs.

The Kremlin’s goal is to set off a humanitarian crisis by cutting off Ukrainian cities from power, heat, and water. Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Odesa are the top targets, with plans to cut electricity and heating by 90% and severely disrupting the sewage system.

UPDATE 0616 GMT:

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has asked Donald Trump “several times” for sanctions on Russian and Chinese companies involved in Russia’s Rassvet satellite network, an alternative to Starlink.

Zelensky said he made the request to Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York last month. He warned the network would improve the precision of Russian airstrikes.

UPDATE 0601 GMT:

A man was murdered and two people injured in Russia’s attacks on Kyiv early Saturday.

UPDATE 0547 GMT:

The joint US–Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund unveiled several investment projects on Friday, including the first critical minerals deal.

Kyiv and the Trump Administration signed the deal in April 2025, giving the Americans favorable access to investment projects in Ukraine.

The Fund has developed a “joint investment platform” with BGV Group, founded by Ukrainian billionaire Hennadii Butkevych, for “a diverse portfolio of early-stage mining projects across Ukraine”. The initial focus will be on identifying rare earths, beryllium, and zirconium deposits.

The initial deal allocates about $30 million, said a senior US official.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Russia is attacking bridges in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv for the third straight day.

Russian forces launched a strike on the Northern Bridge across the Dnipro River on Saturday morning.

Explosions were reported just after 6:30 a.m. Videos showed a large explosion on the bridge as vehicles passed by. Movement was halted, as Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the bridge’s surface and overhead power lines for trolley buses were damaged.

On Friday the Russians attacked the Southern Bridge with the fourth drone strikes in two days.

The assaults have caused long traffic jams through the capital. Klitschko, holding a city security council meeting, said the situation is “very dramatic”.

Around 500,000 people commute from the Dnipro’s left bank to the right bank daily.

Russia has escalated strikes, trying to break civilian resistance and infrastructure heading into winter.

Lawyer Valeriya Tkachenko described dropping her son off at school as an air raid alert sounded, then spending the next two hours in a shelter with her child. A day earlier, the Russians hit a nearby school.

Tkachenko said:

I’m scared to death all day about what could happen to my son….I can’t plan anything any more. It’s not sustainable like this.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that Vladimir Putin ordered commanders in September to abandon any rules of war: “They want Ukrainians to leave the capital…and show that if you don’t have the capital you don’t have the country.”